‘Charity Under Fire’, Bernard Josephs, The JC, May 11, 2007
“Charity under fire”, Bernard Josephs, The JC, May 11, 2007 Communal leaders and Israeli Embassy officials have attacked the actions of a British charity which has announced that it is a “leading member” of the pro-Palestinian Enough coalition, which is planning anti-occupation protests on the 40th anniversary of the Six Day War next month.Jeremy Newmark, chief executive of the Jewish Leadership Council, accused War on Want of being part of a campaign to “demonise” Israel, and a statement from the Israeli Embassy said the organisation was “jumping on the boycott bandwagon”.
The row blew up as War on Want officials took former cabinet minister Clare Short — a strong critic of Israel — to the West Bank, where she met Palestinians and then accused Israel of “war crimes”. According to War on Want, Ms Short said: “I met Palestinian families who have lived and farmed in the [Jordan] valley for generations. But Israel forces them to move time and time again to clear the land for more settlers. The Israelis even left one family without water for their baby in the boiling sun.”
See also our submission to the House of Lords citing War on Want’s politicial activities: “NGO Monitor’s Submission to the International Development Committee Inquiry on Development Assistance and the Occupied Palestinian Territories”, NGO Monitor, October 12, 2006
